The UFC have been making a fair few releases over the last couple of weeks, but there was a greater level of shock on Wednesday evening, as two names were announced to be leaving the company that fans were surprised about.
One was a former heavyweight champion, while the other also competed in a heavyweight title fight. Fans were full of praise for both fighters after their release was made official, and lovers of the UFC claimed that they have both had a profound impact on the sport.
UFC News: Alistair Overeem Released By UFC
Among the stars that was released by the UFC was Alistair Overeem. The American have been a common sight in the heavyweight division throughout his career, and has fought 67 times to date in his professional career. After excellent spells in Dynamite and Strikeforce, he signed for the UFC in December 2011, and went straight into a huge match-up against Brock Lesnar.
He picked up a massive win over the former WWE star, before then going on to lose three of his next four fights. He fought under the UFC banner on 20 occasions during his spell with the company, and picked up wins against Junior Dos Santos and Mark Hunt. Fans would be most surprised by the news as he was only in action last month in the octagon, as he was beaten by TKO by Alexander Volkov to bring an end to his two-fight winning streak. It is believed that he still had two fights left remaining on his contract prior to his release.
UFC News: Dos Santos Also Released
One of the fighters that Overeem beat during his career was also released, as it was confirmed that Dos Santos was also among the stars being released by the company. The 37-year-old still had five fights remaining on his deal, but he will depart the UFC having achieved everything that was possible during his spell with the company.
The Brazilian beat five former world champions during his career, as he picked up wins against Cain Valasquez, Stipe Miocic, Fabricio Werdum, Frank Mur and Shane Carwin. He is also a former heavyweight champion, as he won his only title back in 2011 with a knockout victory against Valasquez. He would go on to have two further championship matches, but he would lose both. His final fight in the UFC came in the middle of January, as he was beaten by TKO by Ciryl Gane.
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